


what a privilege it is to love

by impravidus



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Awesome James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Banter, College, Domestic Fluff, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Genius Tony Stark, Humor, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark at MIT, James "Rhodey" Rhodes is a Good Bro, M/M, MIT Era, Memories, Reminiscing, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:01:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27255379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/impravidus/pseuds/impravidus
Summary: Rhodey and Tony reminisce as they look through a box from their MIT years.Featuring snow globes, polka classes, and near death by pancake
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Tony Stark
Comments: 11
Kudos: 75
Collections: you can tell everybody this is your song





	what a privilege it is to love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [angxlsgrxce](https://archiveofourown.org/users/angxlsgrxce/gifts).



Tony taps his foot impatiently as the coffee pot sputters out his morning brew. Well, more like early afternoon brew. 

He grins as it dings and grabs the steaming mug, blowing lightly on the surface before slurping slowly.

Finally awake enough to process information, no longer blinking blearily, Tony heads for a second mug.

There’s a rustling at the door and Tony perks up.

“Hey Tones!” Rhodey calls. 

Tony hops off of the counter and rushes to the man, prepared to jump into his arms which always makes the older man laugh (and now groan a bit. Tony isn’t as light as he used to be.)

However, Tony stops dead in his tracks, frowning as he sees Rhodey, arms occupied as he holds a stack of boxes.

“Need help?” Tony asks.

“I’ve got it. Thanks. There’s one more in the car, though, if you wanna get that.” He grunts as he plops the boxes onto the dining table and places his hand on the small of his back, stretching out. “We don’t have to get it now, though.” Rhodey heads to Tony and places a palm on his hip, kissing him softly on the lips. He smiles. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Tony replies, smiling back. He pulls him in for another kiss. “Missed you.”

“Mama says hi. Wishes you could’ve made it down to see her too.”

Tony nods. “I promise I’ll be there when she gets settled into the new place. Furnishing after a downsize is a challenge.”

“Oh, and you’d know?” Rhodey asks, amused.

“I’ll have you know that I have _definitely_ downsized over the years. By a few hundred thousand square feet in fact.”

Rhodey laughs. “Right, right.” He places a kiss to Tony’s forehead before collapsing onto a squishy dining chair.

Tony wraps his arms around Rhodey from behind, rubbing his thumb lightly on Rhodey’s arm. He presses gentle kisses on the back of his neck and down his shoulder.

Rhodey tilts Tony’s chin and catches his cold lips onto his again. Tony smiles into the kiss and cups Rhodey’s face with his fingers.

“God, your hands are scorching,” Rhodey says, pulling away. “Were you just drinking coffee?”

“I think you know I was,” Tony states, pulling him in again, licking at his bottom lip.

Rhodey chuckles and pulls away again. “I’m not sure what’s in that box, so just in case it can’t be sitting in a hot car, can you go grab it?”

“Oh, all by myself? You’re not even gonna help me?” 

“It’s just the last box, and it’s small,” Rhodey says.

“Just like me, right?” Tony poses, showcasing his stature.

“I’m shorter than you, Tones.”

“And don’t you forget it!” Tony calls over his shoulder as he heads out the door. 

When he saunters back in with the last box, Rhodey is enjoying a bowl of oatmeal and prunes.

“God, can you be any more of an old man?” Tony asks with a snort.

Rhodey rolls his eyes. “Says the man who carries hard candies in his pockets.”

“I need the sugar boost!” Tony huffs as he sets the box onto the table. “And, by the way, this may have been a small box, but it was heavy.”

“Boo hoo. I carried three boxes.”

“Eat your breakfast, prune man.” Tony cocks his head to the side curiously. Grabbing the pocket knife multitool from his pocket, he slices into the box.

Familiar scents hit Tony and a wave of nostalgia hits him. “Oh, you’ve gotta see this.”

Rhodey scrapes his bowl and takes a final heaping spoonful. “What is it?” he asks with his mouth still full.

Tony holds up a beat up desk lamp covered in stickers.

“Is that my MIT box?”

“I think it must be,” Tony replies. “God, I forgot about this stuff ages ago.” Tony pulls out a thick metal cylinder. “Is this…?”

_“What is this?”_

_Tony frowned. “It’s a thermos!”_

_“Tony, I have a thermos.”_

_“But you don’t have_ this _thermos.”_

_Rhodey sighed. “Does this cost a fortune? Because I can’t in good conscience just casually be carrying around a thermos that costs more than the car I drive.”_

_“It does not cost a fortune. Well, maybe one day it will.” He took a breath. “I made it. For you.”_

_Rhodey raised an eyebrow. “You made it?”_

_“So that your drinks stay at the optimal temperature at all times. I know you like coffee kept at a different temperature than your tea. A-and it can hold cold stuff too. You don’t even need to keep it in there with ice. I mean, you can, but you don’t have to. The ice isn’t necessary. But you can still have it. The ice, I mean—”_

_“It’s amazing, Tony. Thank you.”_

_Tony paused. “You like it?”_

_“Love it. Thank you.”_

_Tony beamed. “Well, that’s only the first prototype, so you’ve gotta tell me if I need to make any adjustments, alright?”_

_Rhodey nodded. “Will do.”_

“It didn’t work,” Rhodey says, smiling softly at it as he rolls it in his palm. “I mean, it did work. But it definitely kept my drinks scorching hot if I put them in before they could cool down. I had to put them in the temperature I wanted it to stay at which meant if I didn’t want to burn out my tonsils, I had to sit and wait for it to cool, but I didn’t usually have the time to do that in the mornings.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?! I could’ve fixed it for you!” 

“Because it worked enough and it was… it was from you. And it was for me. You know? It was more than just a thermos. It was the first thing you had given to me.”

Tony goes silent. “Oh.”

Rhodey pulls out a pair of ratty tennis shoes, the black laces bleached by the aglets which were suspiciously missing.

“What happened to those?” Tony asks.

“You don’t remember?” 

“Should I?”

_“Tony, what happened to my tennis shoes?”_

_“Hm?” Tony looked up. “I… uh… uhm…”_

_“_ Tony _,” Rhodey said firmer. “What happened to my tennis shoes?” he repeated, accentuating each word._

_“Uhm. Well you see, uh, I was working with some chemicals, which chemicals are not important, but it’s the kind I had to open the window for, so if there happen to be more fruit flies in here than usual, then that’s probably why—”_

_“Chemicals. You… you were using chemicals in here?”_

_“I’m surprised you didn’t smell them. I mean, they weren’t super fragrant, but I mean, they smelled like chemicals—”_

_“I just assumed you hit a joint in here again.”_

_“Oh. Nope! Well, yes. I did hit a joint. While I was using the chemicals. Maybe not the best combination. Actually, now that I’m thinking about it, probably definitely not a good combination. But, you live and you learn, hindsight is 20/20, another idiom about learning from your mistakes—”_

_“Tony. Shoelaces.”_

_“Right, right. So this chemical reaction was going a_ little _astray,_ but!” _Rhodey stared at him impatiently. “But, the plastic in off-brand aglets neutralizes the reaction. So, uhm, yup. Uh huh.”_

_Rhodey sighed, his face falling into his hands. “Tony?”_

_“Yes?” Tony replied nervously._

_“No more chemicals in the dorm room.”_

Rhodey nudges Tony, showing off his next find. “Oh man, I loved this thing. It was a lifesaver for years.” 

_Rhodey rubbed at his temples, covering his eyes with a sweatshirt sleeved forearm._

_“You alright?” Tony asked, looking with worry from his bed._

_“Just got a headache. ‘s too bright in here.” Rhodey pulled his sleeve away and squinted uncomfortably._

_Tony hopped off his bed and headed to his desk. Quickly fiddling with scrap metal, the bulbs from his makeshift circuit kit, and a spare clamp, he rushed over to Rhodey and shut his lamp off._

_“Tony! The hell are you—”_

_Tony clipped his creation onto the cover of the textbook and switched it on._

_The bulbs, with a light amber wash, gently illuminated just the pages enough to read them, not too dark to strain Rhodey’s eyes._

_“There,” Tony said._

_“I– thank you. This helps. A lot. Like, a lot a lot.” Rhodey smiled at him even though he knew that Tony couldn’t see him in the darkness._

_“It’s no problem, really.”_

“You kept this?” Tony asks, pulling out a tiny mason jar snow globe.

“Of course I kept it. You made it.”

_“I’ve got something for you!”_

_Rhodey sighed. “I thought we agreed on no gifts.”_

_“It’s not a gift.”_

_Rhodey gave him an incredulous look._

_“Okay, it’s_ technically _a gift, but it’s not a_ big _gift. It’s so little that it doesn’t even constitute as a real gift. It’s basically nothing.”_

_“O...kay. What… is it?”_

_“Hold out your hand.”_

_“Nope. Don’t like that.”_

_“C’mon, Sourpatch.” Tony batted his eyelashes as he jutted his lower lip out. “Please?”_

_Hesitantly, Rhodey held out his hand._

_Tony slid his hand into his hoodie pocket and placed a small jar into Rhodey’s palm._

_“What’s this?”_

_“The librarian said that I looked like I needed to destress and that there was an arts and crafts demonstration and, well, I was bored out of my fuckin’ mind and needed a reason to fuck around and procrastinate, so, well.” He shrugged. “Yeah.”_

_Rhodey looked at the jar closer. It was filled with water and red glitter floated around as he shook it. On the inside of the lid, there was a tiny plastic snowman glued to it. “Is this… a snowglobe?”_

_“Uh, yup. It is.”_

_“It’s…” He snorted. “It’s adorable._ You _are adorable for making this.”_

 _Tony crossed his arms over his chest and grumbled. “I am_ not _adorable.”_  
  


Tony gasps. “It’s Fizz-E!”

“God, you were drinking Coke every day for weeks. You even made me start drinking it so you could get the cans.”

“It was worth it.”

_When Rhodey entered the dorm, he yelped as a cold metal ball brushed against his leg._

_“Tony!” Rhodey yelled._

_Tony startled awake. “What? Huh? My parents won’t pay ransom so don’t bother with taking me hostage!”_

_Rhodey stared at Tony, jaw dropped. “Is that… is that really what you’d say if you were being kidnapped?”_

_“...yes?”_

_The metal ball bonked the side of Rhodey’s leg again._

_His shoulders shot up as he recoiled away from it. “Tony, what the hell is that?”_

_“That’s Fizz-E! She’s my newest bot.”_

_Rhodey looked down at the bot, its body a shiny silver. “What does it do?”_

_“_ She _slurps up spills. She’s got an absorbent vacuum imbedded into her.”_

_“Is this…” Rhodey picked Fizz-E up. “Is she made of Coke cans?”_

_“Ding ding ding! Got it in one.” He scooped her from Rhodey’s hands and rubbed a thumb on her smooth surface. “She’s still learning, so she might suction at your socks if they’re a little sweaty.”_

_“No. Nu-uh. I don’t want that thing anywhere near my feet.”_

_“But—”_

_“Nope!”_

“You know, if I weren’t sober, I might just have to try this.”

Rhodey glances over Tony’s shoulders. “Oh no. I am _never_ drinking that monstrosity _ever_ again.”

_“What exactly is this?”_

_“It’s… well, it’s like a long island iced tea.”_

_“It’s_ like _one? But it isn’t one?”_

_“It’s… something. That’s for sure.”_

_Rhodey stared at the concoction in a mug warily. “What_ exactly _is in it?”_

_“Uh… ginger ale, some rum, some vodka, some gin, some Everclear—”_

_“Jesus. Is this gonna kill me?”_

_“Hopefully not?”_

_Rhodey let out a long sigh. “If I get alcohol poisoning, you’re paying the bill.”_

_Tony drew an X over his heart. “Of course.”_

_Rhodey took a slow sip and paused, brows furrowing. “How does this not taste like paint thinner?”_

_“I’m a good mixologist.”_

“I think I had a hangover for days after that,” Rhodey says. 

“I… actually can’t remember much of that night,” Tony states. “Huh.” He shakes his head, clearing his thoughts, and reaches into the box. “Aw. Look at who it is!”

_Rhodey trudged into the dorm room on his crutches, falling into bed._

_“You have to elevate your foot!” Tony exclaimed. He slipped a pillow beneath Rhodey’s foot._

_“I was getting to it, Tones,” Rhodey said._

_“Nope. I am taking care of you. This is me making up for the many,_ many _times you have taken care of me.”_

_“You don’t need to make it up for me.” Rhodey said, adjusting the pillow behind his back._

_“I am also a philanthropist and believe in helping those in need.” Tony placed his hands on his hips._

_“Oh, yeah, you’re such a philanthropist,” Rhodey retorted._

_“I would smack you with a pillow if you weren’t injured, but you are getting off the hook. For now.” He sat at the edge of his bed. “Do you need anything? Are you thirsty? You probably need to stay hydrated. Something with electrolytes maybe? Or—”_

_“Water’s just fine,” Rhodey interrupted._

_“Water. Comin’ right up.” Tony grabbed a bottle and almost tossed it to Rhodey, but stopped himself. He opened and closed it for him, handing it to him gently._

_“You don’t have to coddle me. It’s just a sprained ankle.”_

_“You need to rest! And recuperate!”_

_“Tony…”_

_“Uh uh! You are staying put.” A lightbulb went off in Tony’s mind. “Oh. I got you something.”_

_“Oh god.”_

_“No! It’s great. It’s wonderful. I promise.” Tony rummaged through his backpack and pulled out a stuffed puppy. “It’s a get better puppy. I… well… when I got my appendix out, my parents just got me a bouquet of flowers I wasn’t old enough to appreciate. The other kids in the pediatric wing got balloons and stuffed animals, but I… got red roses and baby’s breath, which like, what six year old wants that, you know? Really, I didn’t even want the balloons and the stuffed animals. I just wanted my parents to be there.” He chuckled dryly. “But they weren’t, and that’s how it is, so, I just… I know I’m being a bit… much. But I just… am giving you what I never got.” He swallowed thickly. “Someone who cared.”_

_Rhodey gawked at Tony speechlessly. “You know you’ve got that, right? Someone who cares?”_

_Tony shook his head and snorted sardonically. “No. I really don’t.”_

_“Yes. You do,” Rhodey said firmly. “You’ve got me.”_

_Tony looked up, eyes wide with confusion._

_“D’you really think I didn’t care about you?”_

_“I… I just figured…”_

_“Well, I do. I care about you a lot, and don’t you forget it.”_

“Whenever I was sick, I’d take it out. Something about it made me feel better,” Rhodey says.

“Placebo effect.”

Rhodey rolls his eyes. “You always have to ruin emotional sentiments with science, huh?”

“It’s my specialty.” Tony claps, laughing. “Oh, man. I forgot about this.” He holds up the Polka Diploma. “We _aced_ that polka class.”

“We bullshitted through that polka class you mean.”

_It was the early winter of 1986 when Tony had plopped a flyer onto Rhodey’s desks._

_“What is this?”_

“This _is an absolute tragedy. Just another reason why my life is a complete joke made to torture me.”_

_Rhodey eyed the flyer in confusion. “I’m not following.”_

_“My cousin Francesco is getting married and for some reason_ I _am one of his groomsmen and for_ some _reason, the groomsmen and the bridesmaids are having a big polka at the beginning of the reception.”_

_Rhodey barked out a laugh. “Sucks for you, man.”_

_“Well, the thing is—”_

_“No.”_

_“It’s a_ couples’ _course—”_

_“No!”_

_“And I need to bring my own partner—”_

_“Tony, c’mon. Why me? Why not anyone else but me?”_

_“Because you’re the only person I trust with this kind of thing!” Tony exclaimed. “I… I’ve got a reputation and that reputation is being good at everything I do, but I… I’m not a dancer and I’ve never_ been _a dancer, and at least I know when you make fun of you’ll at least… you’ll come back. And me not being good enough won’t drive you away.”_

 _Rhodey softened. “You don’t have to be good enough. Not to say that you’re not. You’re always enough. No matter how good or bad you are at, at, at_ Polka _, you’re still gonna be enough.”_

_Tony ducked his head. “I just…”_

_“Nope. You don’t get a say. It’s true no matter what you try to dispute. You are enough, Tony. You always will be.”_

“I bet I could still kill that triple step,” Tony says.

“No.”

“C’mon—”

“I am fifty-five goddamn years old, Tony. I am not doing the polka with you.”

Tony pouts. “You’re no fun.”

“No, I am sensible and don’t want to pull out my back more than it already is.” Rhodey groans. “I still can’t believe you made me this.”

_As Rhodey stepped out of his final class of the day, he was bombarded by a faceful of confetti._

_“Happy birthday!”_

_Rhodey blinked, brain still rebooting after two hours of ancient Greek philosophy. “Huh?”_

_“You didn’t think I forgot, did you?” Tony asked, giving him a cheeky grin._

_“It’s my birthday?”_

_Tony’s smile faltered. “You…_ you _forgot.”_

_“I’ve got a lot on my mind.”_

_Tony wrapped an arm around Rhodey’s shoulders (as best he could with the height difference). “Well, have I got a celebration set for you.”_

_Rhodey sighed. “I’m really… thank you, Tony. That’s really nice of you, but I’m tired and I just want to get back to the room and take a nap.”_

_Tony smiled. “Well, lucky for you, my plans include two boxes of meat lovers pizza and garlic bread sticks, a copy of_ WarGames _on VideoDisc, and a pack of crappy beer if you so choose to have it._

_Rhodey smiled softly. “Thanks, Tones. That’s exactly what I need.”_

_“I’ve also got one more thing.” Tony pulled his hand from behind his back and showcased…_

_“That is… horrible.” Rhodey laughed._

_“Birthday boy needs his birthday hat.” The birthday hat was a rainbow polka dotted plastic cone with a rim of tinsel. “And look.” Tony pressed a button on the inside and the polka dots glowed._

_“You’re gonna make me wear this, aren’t you?”_

_“The whole walk back, yup.”_

_Rhodey begrudgingly slipped it on. “I’ll get you back for this.”_

_“I’m sure you’ll find a way.”_

Tony barks out a loud laugh but stops abruptly as he catches sight of the worn teal paper, its lamination scrubbed down on the edges. “Oh.”

Rhodey softens. “Oh.”

Tony runs his fingers over the menu softly. “We had a lot of good times here.”

“Yeah,” Rhodey says. “We did.”

_Tony sulked silently in his seat, his shoulders tall but his demeanor small._

_“So, what looks good?” Rhodey asked, not looking up from his menu._

_“Why are you doing this?”_

_Rhodey set the menu down. “What do you mean?”_

“This _. The… what do you want?”_

_Rhodey frowned. “I don’t know what you mean.”_

_“What do you want from me? Because there’s— do you want money? Because I have it, but I don’t just give it away.”_

_Rhodey jolted in shock. “What?”_

_“Oh. Not money. You’re, what, an aerospace engineering major? You think my dad’s connections can get you into the business?”_

_“No! No. I don’t— I don’t want anything from you.”_

_“Of course you do. Everyone does. Why else would you—” Tony waved his hand vaguely._

_“Because of this. Because you think that— because people have only—” Rhodey stopped and took a breath. “You look like you need someone in your corner. And I know there’s a lot of assholes around here, and I may be one of them, but at least I care enough to keep them away from you.”_

_“I don’t need protecting.”_

_Rhodey gave him a lopsided grin and a shrug. “Maybe you don’t. But it gets lonely living the life you are.”_

_“I… I have plenty…”_

_“People who clearly make you feel like you’re being used.”_

_Tony’s unconvincing stammering halted. “I don’t—”_

_“Don’t think too hard about it. You’ve got no obligation to let me stick around.”_

_Tony’s eyebrows drew together. “Why? Why are you doing this?”_

_“Because you deserve a friend. And I can be one.”_

_Tony bobbed his head, not quite believing Rhodey’s words. “Okay.”_

_“So,” Rhodey picked up his menu again, “what looks good?”_

_“I… my dad never let me eat this kind of stuff,” Tony said slowly._

_“Well, your dad’s not here.”_

_Tony grinned. “The chicken tenders any good?”_

_It was finals season and Tony and Rhodey had been hunched over their desks, studying for hours._

_Tony nudged at Rhodey’s arm from behind. “C’mon.”_

_“Give me a minute. I just have to—”_

_“Nope. I’m hungry and your brain’s gonna melt out of your skull if you keep staring at that textbook.”_

_“Tony. I have to—”_

_“_ You _need to come with me to get greasy burgers and milkshakes. Because_ that _is what you need right now.”_

_Rhodey, knowing that Tony was inexorable when he was being this stubborn, set his pen down. “You’re paying?”_

_Tony gave him a toothy smile. “Of course. Gotta treat you right.”_

_“What’s wrong?”_

_Tony looked up, pausing with his lips still around his jumbo straw. “Hm?”_

_“You didn’t think I’d miss that splash of Bailey’s you added to your milkshake, did you?”_

_Tony gulped, wiping his lips with the back of his sweater covered hand. “I’d say it’s more like a shot—”_

_Rhodey raised his eyebrows in this “I’m not putting up with your bullshit today, Tony” look that Tony had grown very accustomed to._

_“I talked to my dad today.”_

_Rhodey’s face fell, going stoic and serious. “What did he say?”_

_“The usual. Uh, said I shouldn’t bother coming back for winter break because him and my mom are going on some trip or something. Said they were giving Jarvis and the housestaff the holidays off because he’s just_ such a great guy. _So, uh, yeah. I guess I’ll just be sticking around here.”_

_“Or you could come with me?”_

_Tony scoffed. “Yeah, right.”_

_“No. Really. You know Mama adores you. You’re welcome there anytime.”_

_“I couldn’t possibly ask you to—”_

_“You’re not asking me anything. I’m asking you.” Rhodey tapped the table in front of Tony. “Come home with me. Spend the holidays with me. Eat too many cookies and help me clean dishes after dinner and keep me company when I need to take a breather.” Rhodey smiled. “Come home with me.”_

_Tony looked into Rhodey’s eyes with an unreadable mix of emotions. “You really want me to come?”_

_“I’d love for you to come.”_

_“I… they won’t mind?”_

_“I’ll call her tonight and she’ll tell you herself that she’d love to have you.”_

_Tony paused. “Okay._ Okay. _I’d… yes. I’ll come with you.”_

_“We better get packing then.”_

_Tony poked at his fries quietly, eyes glued to the slightly sticky tabletop. “Hey Rhodey?”_

_Rhodey’s head snapped up. “Yeah?”_

_“You… you’ve got…” Tony’s brows scrunched deeper. “You know what you’re doing after college, right?”_

_“I mean, I think I do. I’ve got a plan.”_

_“Yeah._ Yeah. _You’ve got a plan.” He took a long breath. “And that plan. How’d you know it was what you wanted?”_

_Rhodey set his burger down, wiping his hands on the napkin sitting on his lap. “I don’t know. I just… I’m sure at some point I had some sort of epiphany moment, but I’ve just had this plan. It works out. I’ve worked for it. I just… it’s how it is.”_

_“And what if your plan,” Tony fiddled with the fry between his fingers, “what if you didn’t want it anymore?”_

_“What’s this about, Tones?”_

_“Nothing! I just—”_

“Tony.”

 _Tony sighed, running a hand over his face. “We all know what Howard wants. We all know what I’m supposed to do— what I’m_ going _to do. It’s what I’m meant to do. I’m a Stark, I… I’ve gotta… I have to…” He huffed out a short breath. “It’s just… daunting as hell. And I’m a genius, I know I am. I wouldn’t be where I am today if I weren’t one. But I… what if I want more? What if I want to be more than what I’m going to become? What if I want to be someone more than who I’m set up to be, to, to follow? What if I want to make my own name? Not ride off of Howard’s legacy and success. I just… I want more but I don’t know if I’m cut out for more. I don’t know if I ever will be.”_

_“Hey,” Rhodey said, soft but firm. “One day, that company’s gonna be yours, and you’ll build your own legacy. You’ll make your own name. I know you will. Nothing’s gonna hold you back. You have… you’ve got such big ideas, Tones, and I can’t imagine that you’re not gonna let them loose.”_

_“I’ve got… I’ve got_ so _many big ideas. I’m not… I’m not old enough yet for him to really take them seriously, but I know, I_ hope _that once I start really working and really show him what I’ve got, maybe he’ll do something about them.”_

_“It’ll come. You’ll make your mark. I know you will.” Rhodey patted him on the shoulder._

_Tony leaned into the touch. “Thanks.”_

_“I think I’m going to explode. Just imagine the headlines! ‘Stark Heir Passes Away at Eighteen: Death by Pancakes.’”_

_Rhodey laughed hard. “Were they worth it?”_

_“Oh god were they worth it.” Tony looped an arm around Rhodey’s shoulders. “I think I’ve consumed more sugar tonight than I did my whole childhood.”_

_“The Birthday Supreme really is something.”_

_“I want to meet the genius who came up with that gift to humanity. I mean, frosting, chocolate sauce, M &Ms, and chocolate chips? Am I vibrating? I think I may be vibrating.” _

_Rhodey chuckled. “How about we sit down for a second.”_

_Tony plopped down on the nearest bench, hands jittery and leg bouncing quickly. “You joining me any time or are you just gonna stand there like a doofus?”_

_Rhodey over-exaggeratedly strided next to him, taking his time as he sat next to him. “Happy?”_

_“Very.” Tony slid down the bench, spreading his legs as he leaned his head on the hard wooden back. “Stars are out tonight.”_

_Rhodey glanced up. “They are.”_

_“Bright.”_

_Rhodey watched Tony with a fond smile as he admired the night sky._

_“Don’t get to look at the stars enough.”_

_“Maybe if you left the room, you might.”_

_Tony snorted. “Yeah, no. I don’t have the time.”_

_“Do you wish you did? Wish you had the time to just take a moment and stargaze?”_

_“Sometimes,” he whispered. “My brain moves too fast too much and I can never slow it down. But right now, right here, it’s…” He turned to face Rhodey and stopped. His eyes flickered to Rhodey’s lips._

_Rhodey’s breath hitched and suddenly his eyes were darting down to Tony’s lips, heart skipping as Tony’s tongue swiped nervously out. Rhodey placed his hand on the bench behind Tony, thumb brushing his neck. He began to lean in._

_“Tell me I’m reading this wrong,” Tony whispered, their faces just centimeters apart._

_“Can’t. Because you’re not.” His hand slid up to caress Tony’s cheek and he closed the distance between them, pressing his lips tentatively against Tony’s._

_Tony gasped softly and cupped the back of Rhodey’s neck, pulling him in closer._

_It was a simple kiss. Chaste and uncertain. The way they sat on the bench gave their bodies an awkward twist and Tony was feeling a little queasy from his pancake feast, but it was soft and sweet and safe._

_Tony was the one to pull away, heart palpitating rapidly. “Wow. When did that happen?”_

_Rhodey just laughed. “Was that okay?”_

_“Oh, more than okay. Absolutely phenomenal. 10/10 would recommend. No, wait. Wouldn’t recommend. I want you all to myself.”_

_Rhodey kissed him again, smiling against his lips._

“I love you,” Rhodey says softly. “I’ve loved you for a long time. And just seeing all this… it’s just reminding me how much I did.”

Tony looks lovingly into Rhodey’s eyes with a dopey smile. “That’s so fucking cliche.”

Rhodey slaps his arm.

“Where’d you get that line? Hallmark Valentine’s Day special?”

Rhodey stands up, taking his bowl to the sink. “Just for that, don’t even think you’re getting any tonight.”

“But you’ve been gone all weekend!”

“Nope. You did this to yourself.”

**Author's Note:**

> If you want to chat, my Tumblr is [official-impravidus](https://official-impravidus.tumblr.com/)


End file.
